Decision records
Automated Decisions and Constitutional Accountability
A decision does not become less public because software helped produce it. If the outcome affects recognition, service, liberty, dignity or remedy, the record should show who controlled the rule, what input was used, what output was produced and which human authority can review it.
Where failure occurs
The archive repeatedly distinguishes disposal from resolution. In automated environments, the same problem can appear as a closed ticket, rejected application, failed match or generated risk label without a meaningful explanation to the citizen.
Minimum record
- the rule or model used for the decision;
- the public authority responsible for the system;
- the source record or input that affected the citizen;
- the human review route and correction process;
- the preservation of logs needed to test the decision later.
What remains unresolved
This page does not assert that a named automated system is unlawful. It sets the evidentiary standard the archive will use when a future case file concerns automated public decision-making.